7 Simple Steps to Succeeding in Life.

Utilize a proven simple, but powerful formula to achieve what you want.

George Bernard Shaw once said: “Two percent of the people think; three percent of the people think they think; and ninety-five percent of the people would rather die than think.” As funny as this statement is, it carries a considerable amount of truth with it. Look around you hard enough, and you will be able to tell in which category the people surrounding you fit in. The word “thinking” in the context of this article means effective utilization of your brain’s potential. In my experience, people’s level of success is in direct proportion to their use of their mental faculties. If you carefully observe the people you consider highly successful you will notice that they know what they want, they have plenty of confidence, initiative, discipline, high capacity for belief and invariably a positive mental attitude. All of these are direct results of brain functions. But let me open a secret for you. There is only one difference between the highly successful people and everyone else. The latter group has not yet learned how expand the utilization of the power of mind. And it is never too late for anyone to get started. If you know deep down that you haven’t reached your potential, if you know that you could be doing better than you currently are, if you don’t feel as successful as you would want to be, if you feel like you are stuck in one place then it’s time for you to make a change. For a start, I highly encourage you to read the classic of motivational literature - “Think and Grow Rich” by Napoleon Hill, which I happen to consider the bible of this genre, and a personal life changer. Largely based on the success principles outlined by Napoleon Hill and my personal experiences with those principles, here are some recommendations for you to take on a life transformation. Your success is just a decision away!

1. Decision. You have to make a firm decision of committing to success. Decide that you desire more from life and that you are willing to put all your energy and efforts into getting what you want. No more excuses. No more blaming others for personal failures. Take full responsibility for your actions and results and don’t look back. It takes much courage to make this decision but the alternate route of living the unsatisfactory life will make this decision easy for you. For me the decision came after a dog attack in November of 2014. While waiting for the doctor at Patient First I reflected back on my life, realized that it’s too short and that I was going to change my life forever, whatever it took. I haven’t looked back since.

2. Define What You Want. Now that you have committed to changing your life you have to decide what you want, and be very specific. It’s not enough to say “I want to be successful” or “I want to make a lot of money”. You have to decide the exact amount of money you want and the time frame for attaining it. If your goal is something other than making money it still should have a deadline. Don’t be afraid to set higher goals that will stretch you. Next write down your goals or put them in your phone notes. The formulation is crucial. Here are some samples:

“I am so happy and thankful today that I made $100,000 by December 31st 2019”. Or for REALTORS, “I am so happy and thankful today that I won Circle of Excellence℠ award by December 31st, 2019”. I made winning a Circle of Excellence℠ award one of my goals for 2016 but at the time I had not a slightest clue of how I was going to do it.

3. Create Plans. Let’s say your goal is making a $100,000 by March 31st 2018. Every night ask yourself “What can I do tomorrow to generate the income I need to reach my goal?” Write down all the answers that come to your mind. Use your imagination. Don’t stop until you have a list of at least 10-15 activities/actions you can take each day. It may be calling people you know, leaving a promotional piece in a neighborhood store, creating a catchy social media post… You get the idea. And the next day start executing your to-do actions one by one. The discipline to execute will make you or break you.

4. Convince Yourself You Have Already Achieved Your Goal. This step has to do with nothing but faith. You have to have unwavering faith that you will achieve your goal. Read your goals at least twice a day - in the morning and before going to bed. Go a step further, record yourself reading your goals in a spirit of absolute faith and keep playing the recording back until your subconscious mind accepts your statements as the truth and starts acting on them.This may take months. Visualize as vividly as possible and as often as possible that you have already achieved your goal. Feel how you would feel when you reached it. I would come to my office every day, look at the empty wall in front of me and visualize the Circle Of Excellence℠ plaque with my name on it hanging on the wall.

5. Persevere. Unquestionably you will run into roadblocks, setbacks and temporary defeat. Furthermore, it’s possible that you may not see any immediate results for months. This will be the real test of what you are made of. The further you think you are getting from your goal the more you need increase your efforts. And be patient. “Patience, persistence and perspiration make an unbeatable combination for success” says Napoleon Hill. After 2 small closings in January of 2016 I was working really hard and increasing my efforts day by day. Months went by without any closings and by July the COE award seemed as far as it could be. Now would be a good time for me to get discouraged and give up. Nothing of that sort went through my mind though. In my mind I had already won the award, it was hanging on my office wall! Plus I had read that “A winner never quits and a quitter never wins”

6. Be Prepared to Receive. And then it was like someone opened a faucet to a waterfall. On July 12th I had the biggest sale in my 10 year career. After that almost every month I had closings for the rest of the year. Not just closings, but 4 back to back double enders! You absolutely know that doesn’t happen by accident or luck. You absolutely know it’s a result of natural laws that work all the time, more specifically the law of increasing returns, so beautifully described by Emerson. At least I knew it. To make the long story short, not only did I make it to COE but I almost got to a silver level. The COE plaque is now hanging on the wall in my office, in the exact spot where I visualized it. But what’s significantly more important is that I now have a solid proof that this system works. And today I’m delighted for the opportunity to share these principles with you.

7. Surround Yourself with Positive Influences. Try to hang around people that motivate you. Attending educational seminars and social events is a great way of staying motivated and positive. Listen to motivational audio books when you are driving or performing mechanical tasks. Become success conscious!

By now you should start feeling something stirring inside of you. By now you are feeling some of your napping potential waking up. You are starting to feel forces you didn’t know existed in you. The more you read the more powerful these feelings become. The more powerful they become the more they start pushing you towards a decision - the decision to change your life. The decision to become successful - in whatever terms you define success. And all of a sudden you will feel an instantaneous shift and inner peace. A few seconds later your will realize that you have made that decision. You know you have what it takes. You know you are going to define and achieve your goals. In your mind you have already achieved them. I love this saying by philosopher Bob Proctor: “If you can hold it in your head you will hold it in your hands”. Good luck!